Key Wisconsin Badgers: No. 13 - Defensive Lineman Rodas Johnson

Wisconsin's 2023 football season is right around the corner, so BadgerBlitz.com ranked the top 30 players who we think will be the keys to success for Luke Fickell's squad this year.

Playing time, past performance and positional depth all factored into our staff rankings.

Rodas Johnson, a four-star defensive lineman from Ohio, was a significant get for the Badgers in the 2019 recruiting class. The No. 19 defensive tackle in the country ultimately chose Wisconsin over Texas and Penn State, but he also had scholarship offers from Michigan, Oklahoma, Iowa, Northwestern, Notre Dame and Pittsburgh, among others.

“They have been recruiting me since early sophomore year and was one of the teams that stuck around and seen how I developed,” Johnson told Rivals.com. “They got close with my family, know my whole family by name and treated them like family. They just grew on me as time went on.

“I have been contemplating this for a long time, thinking about where I fit, where can I connect with everybody and still be able to have success as a football player as well as a student. I just felt Wisconsin was the best place, had the best interest for me and showed me a lot of love. I felt comfortable, caught good vibes, connected with the team well, had good relationships with the team, it’s a good education, my parents loved it… everything."

Johnson was part of defensive line class for UW that also included Keeanu Benton and Gio Paez.

Credit Johnson for continuing to develop during his time at Wisconsin. After a redshirt season, he played in just one game in 2020. The following year, Johnson earned his first letter and participated in 12 contests.

"Rodas, he’s battled some things on and off the field during his time here, so the maturity that he’s shown, I’m excited about that," former position coach Ross Kolodziej told reporters in the spring of 2022. "In terms of explosiveness and twitch, he’s got something that’s different, so he’s another guy that you look at how you exploit one-on-one matchups and put him in different situations. But it’s going to come back to him understanding those opportunities and maximizing those opportunities."

This fall, Johnson will be asked to build off the 10 starts and 492 snaps (out of 839) he played in 2022. According to PFF, Johnson's numbers were in the low 60s across the board. He will need to improve on those marks if Wisconsin's defense is going to be a strength this fall.

During spring camp, reporters saw a handful of different defensive fronts and alignments. Most often, though, the Badgers featured two down linemen, with Johnson and Isaiah atop the depth chart. Behind them, James Thompson and Gio Paez were next up.

Johnson, 6-foot-2 and 299 pounds, could very well be UW's top defensive lineman this fall. He has made steady improvement during his four years in the program and is ready to step into a bigger role in 2022.

"You got to play football (with a chip on your shoulder)," Johnson said. "Even if you don't have it as a unit, you have to have it as an individual. You've heard many stories of Herbie (Nick Herbig) like 'oh, a lot of people doubted me.' A lot of people that came here have some kind of hardship and they are fighting through it every day, so just coming out here and having fun, that means a lot.

"Yes, we have a lot to deal with with losing Keeanu (Benton) but you lose people every year. We lost Henny (Matt Henningsen) the year before and you guys were asking the same questions as far as losing him. But the show doesn't stop, the world keeps revolving. You have to find your way through it and come out on top."

Johnson's upward trajectory will be something to watch when fall camp rolls around. The fifth-year lineman will be asked to take a bigger role, both on and off the field, with Benton now in the NFL. A multi-year starter, Benton played 428 snaps and recorded 35 tackles, 10 tackles for loss, 4.5 sacks and 27 run stops in 2022, according to PFF.

"Let's just call a spade, a spade. Here's where the numbers were and here's what we have returning in the room," position coach Greg Scruggs said. "Let me know if this looks good to you and if not, cool. Let's go put on the cleats and let's go to work.

"There was more of that kind of a call to action as opposed to looking at them and saying we have to be lot better. That's just the reality of it and hopefully it motivates the guys to want get better every day and not get comfortable with what we've shown."

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